Christmas with my A
by mlred
Summary: Emily POV. A continuation of the episode How the A Stole Chrismas
1. Chapter 1

Feeling the chill in the air, I slowly opened my eyes and raised my head. My arm had fallen asleep as it rested under Paige's head. Looking around Spencer's bedroom, I saw the shadows of her furniture spread across the floor. Paige and I were the only two there.

Aria and Ezra retired to Spencer's parents' bedroom while Hanna and Caleb took Melissa's room. Spencer and Toby stayed in the living room due to his broken leg. Standing from Spencer's bed, I tried not to wake Paige.

Walking to the window that looked over the backyard, I peered out and saw in the snow what appeared to be several sets of fresh footprints. A's Christmas tree and message were still lit and it casted an amber glow across the sky. Looking closely at the footprints, I noticed one set didn't go toward the tree at all. It went from Spencer's back door toward Ali's backyard.

Turning back to Paige to make sure she was still asleep, I quietly slipped on my jeans and boots and walked downstairs. Tip toe-ing past Spencer and Toby sleeping on the couch, I opened the back door in her kitchen and stepped outside. My boots crunched in the snow with each step I took.

Turning the corner to Ali's backyard, I followed the footprints that led to her door. Standing in her yard, I looked up at her house and wondered when everything went wrong. At what point did it become too late to just be friends with her. Before I could answer my own question, I heard Ali's back door open.

"Merry Christmas," she said in a low monotone. She looked like she had been crying.

"How did you know I was out here?" I asked.

"I was looking out my window and saw you," she answered. I remembered that her window also overlooked Spencer's backyard. "Did you want to come in?" she politely asked.

"No," I declined. She shrugged her shoulders and stepped outside into the cold. She was wearing pajama bottoms and a heavy coat, which I envied. My long sleeve shirt was defenseless against the cold air.

"How was dinner?" she asked walking down the steps to her back porch. She was only a few feet away from me now.

"It was nice. Ezra cooked," I didn't want to make small talk but I couldn't pull myself away from her.

"You looked really beautiful tonight," she said. "The belle of the ball," she whispered. Although I wanted to tell her she was the one who made heads turn tonight, I didn't. What little sanity I had when she was around wasn't going to to allow for compliments to be exchanged.

"Thank you," I looked away from her.

"I see you had a decorator," Ali nodded toward the glow of A's tree.

"Are you sure you didn't have something to do with it?" I accused.

"Not this again," she replied.

"I shouldn't have come out here," I told her and turned to walk away.

"Wait," she said and I stopped. "Do you still love me?" she asked.

"What?" I turned around and saw her take a step closer to me.

"Do you still love me?" she said more clearly and took another step closer. We were mere inches apart from one another, our lips aligned.

Looking at the moon reflecting off her blue eyes, all the anger I felt toward her seemed to disappear. It was just us- in this moment- and it didn't matter that my friends thought she was capable of doing these heinous crimes. I knew in my heart that Ali, my Ali, could never hurt anyone. All her game playing in the past was just a defense.

"Yes," I whispered.

She took another step toward me and closed the gap between us. She leaned in and pressed her lips against mine. They were warm and wet and it felt good to feel her mouth shield mine from the stinging cold air. I opened my mouth slightly and let her tongue slide along mine. Placing my hands around her face, I kissed her and just let myself feel the moment we were sharing. I wanted nothing more than this kiss to last forever because I knew when all of these A games were over, she would still be my everything.

"You taste like peppermint," she said when we broke from the kiss. My eyes were still closed as I hoped she would lean in again. But she didn't. "I like it," she added.

"You taste like St. Nick," I spoiled the romance lingering between us.

"You saw?" she asked and looked away from me.

"Aria did," I answered.

"It meant nothing," she defended. We both remained quiet. "Besides, you have Paige," she pointed out.

"Not for long. She's moving to California with her family. They don't think it's safe here," I answered.

"It isn't," Ali looked over my shoulder and glared.

I turned and looked to see what she was glaring at.

"Paige," I said.

"I couldn't find you in the house; I got worried so I went looking for you," she explained. "I guess I should have known you would be here," she looked at Ali as her mouth fell into a frown. Before I had the chance to explain myself, Paige shook her head and walked quickly back into the house.

"Wait," I said and I took a step closer to her.

"Let her go," Ali held on to my arm.

"I'm not like you," I snapped. "I can't just leave the people I care about." I pulled my arm out of her grip and ran back toward Spencer's house.


	2. Chapter 2

Walking back in to Spencer's house to find Paige, I quietly closed the door behind me so I didn't wake up Spencer and Toby in the event they were still asleep. Looking to my right, I saw Spencer and Toby slowly rise from the couch. Spencer turned on the lamp next to the couch and it cast a soft glow across the living room. With the light on, we could all see Paige walking up the stairs. Spencer stood from the couch and saw me standing in the kitchen.

"Is everything okay?" Spencer asked not fully awake. She looked back at Toby who was wrestling with the blankets.

"Yeah," I quickly said looking at Paige. "She just stepped outside for a minute," I added.

Spencer looked at me and then toward Paige. It was written all over Paige's face that she wasn't in the mood to lie for me. I took in a deep breath and slowly exhaled hoping Paige wouldn't tell everyone where I really was and what she really saw. Paige finally looked at me as she stood in the middle of the staircase.

"We wanted to see if A spread anymore Christmas cheer," Paige told Spencer. "All is clear," she said as she glared at me.

"We're going back to bed," I cut her off before Spencer could sense the hostility in Paige's voice.

"Okay," Spencer said as she sat back on the couch next to Toby. "We'll see you in the morning," she turned off the lamp as I made my way through the living room and up the stairs with Paige.

Back in Spencer's room, Paige began to pace back and forth making sure we didn't make eye contact with one another. As she paced she brought her hand up to her mouth and began biting on the tip of her thumb nail. Closing the door to Spencer's room, I softly walked toward her and touched her shoulder with my hand. Quickly jerking her shoulder away from me, she brought her hand from her mouth and stopped pacing. Turning to face me, I saw all the hurt that I had caused in her eyes.

"I'm sorry," I whispered.

"Oh, save it," Paige snapped at me.

"Please don't tell the others," I pleaded.

"Is that all you're concerned with?" Paige finally looked me in the eye. "I knew it would be tough for us to stay together especially because I am leaving Rosewood but I didn't even pack my bags yet and you're already locking lips with someone else. THE someone else," she stressed.

"We have a history," I tried to defend. "It wasn't planned." But I could tell from the look on Paige's face that nothing I said was going to take the sting out of what she saw between me and Ali. It wasn't just a kiss she witnessed—she saw who I was truly in love with.

"I won't tell the others," she looked away from me. "But you have to do something for me in return," she added.

"What?" I was prepared to wash her car, pay her cell phone bill for the rest of her life—anything to make sure she didn't tell the others.

"When I leave Rosewood, I don't want you to ever contact me again," she answered. I was prepared to do anything but that.

"Paige—you don't mean it," I took a step forward.

"I honestly don't know if I do or not," she said standing her ground. She looked me in the eyes once more and exhaled deeply from her nose. With everything that I put her through: the love triangle; all the danger from A, she finally had her fill. I locked eyes with her so she could see she wasn't the only one suffering. As we stared at one another, I could feel the chill from the outside seep into the bedroom. But it was Paige's stare that was colder than the air around us. "I'm going home to pack," she broke the silence. Before I had the chance to ask her to stay, she took a step toward me and placed the inside of her two fingers against her lips. She kissed her fingers and then gently placed them on my lips. It was the last "kiss" we were ever going to share.

Roughly twenty minutes after Paige left Spencer's house, I felt my phone buzz next me as I lied awake on Spencer's bed. Looking down I saw a text message across the screen. 'Look out the window –"A",' it read. Sitting up from the bed, I crossed the room to Spencer's window and looked out. Across from me, Ali sitting in her bedroom window holding her cell phone. She smiled at me when I approached the window. The moonlight that piqued through the clouds rested beautifully across her. I felt my phone buzz again. 'Come over,' the text message from Ali read.

Slipping past Toby and Spencer who were once again sound asleep on the couch, I walked out the back door. As I made my way to Ali's backdoor, I matched my footsteps in the foot tracks in the snow from earlier in the night. Approaching her house, I saw Ali standing in the backdoor waiting to let me in. I didn't know why I was there. I was still upset from hurting Paige but no matter how hard I tried, my heart and legs were working against me. Deep down I wanted to be with Ali.

"Hi," she said as I walked into her house.

"Hi," I said back. I followed her through the kitchen and living room and upstairs into her bedroom. Once we were both in her room, she closed the door behind us. Looking out of Ali's bedroom window and into Spencer's bedroom window I could see everything in Spencer's room that Ali is able to see when the curtains are drawn back. Ali had a clear of my break-up with Paige, if she was watching us.

"Did she leave for good?" Ali asked as if she was reading my mind.

"Yeah," I whispered.

"I'm sorry it didn't work out between you two. I know how much you care about her," she said.

"Thanks," I turned to look at her. Why couldn't Ali show this side to everyone else so they could get to know her in the way that I do?

"We never got to finish our conversation?" Ali reminded me.

"Which one?" I asked as I walked past her and sat on the edge of her bed.

"The one about you still loving me?" she clarified. She waited until I sat on her bed and crossed the room to join me. Sitting close enough that our sides touched when she sat down, the mattress sank beneath our joined weight.

"Ali," I looked at her as she placed her hands over mine. "I just broke up with Paige," I bit down on my lip to fight the urge to kiss Ali again. Although things had been over with Paige since she left a letter with Detective Holbrook about Ali still being alive, my heart needed time to mourn Paige. But my body still ached for Ali.

"All I was going to say is, I still love you too," she said as she scooted back toward the pillows. When she reached the top of the bed, she patted the vacant spot next to her. "I just want you in my arms tonight," she added.

I looked at the empty spot in her bed where she patted and slowly crawled my way up to her. When I reached the pillows, she stood from the bed and pulled the covers back so we could both lie underneath them. The last time we were both in this bed was the first time she invited me to be inside her. My entire body embraced the chill that ran through me as I thought about what it would be like to be Ali again.

"I can't fall asleep here. The others think I'm in Spencer's room," I said as I rested my head on Ali's pillow. She pulled the covers up to our shoulders and laid her head down and faced me. We were a few inches apart from one another.

"They won't wake up for hours," she assured me. "Come closer," she politely asked.

As I slid my way closer toward her, I felt her hands move across my waistline. She placed her forehead against the bridge of my nose and I kissed her lightly on the head. She felt so warm and her hair smelled the way it always did. Everything felt so right when I was with her.

Pulling back my lips from her head, Ali raised her head and aligned her mouth with mine. She looked into my eyes as she waited for me to close-in the mere inches that separated us. Closing my eyes, I leaned in and kissed her. From under the blankets, I felt her hands caress my arms and travel up to the side of my face. She held my head in place as she broke from our kiss. Opening my eyes I saw her staring at me with an adoration that I've never seen before.

"They won't wake up for hours," she said with a playful smile. Getting the hint, I leaned in and kissed her again.

With her hands still around my face, she turned to lie on her back and brought me on top of her. Spreading her legs so I could fall in between them, my hips carefully landed up against her. As our kiss grew with intensity, I felt her mouth open and her tongue push into my mouth. Placing my hands on the bed so I could steady myself on top of her, I pressed my hip bone hard against her and smiled as she gasped in pleasure. Continuing a steady rhythm with my hips grinding against her, I traced my tongue against hers and smiled as she began to writhe beneath me. Feeling her nails dig into the skin on my back, she dragged her fingernails down toward the small of my back, and took in a held her breath and continued to work my hip bone harder against her.

"Say it again," I breathed in to her ear.

"I still love you too," she let slowly escape from her mouth. She picked her head off the pillow and began to kiss me. We didn't stop until the sun won the battle against the moon and it was time for me to return to Spencer's house.

Making my way back to Spencer's kitchen door, I saw Hanna and Caleb were already in the kitchen making coffee. There was no way for me to get inside the house without them seeing me. I waited for Hanna to fill her mug and walk back upstairs with Caleb before I opened the kitchen door. Turning back around, I saw the Christmas message from A was no longer lit.

"Where'd you go?" Spencer asked me as I came back inside the house. Looking into the living room, Spencer, Toby, Ezra and Aria were sitting around the coffee table staring at me.


	3. Chapter 3

Wiping crumbs off the front table in The Brew, I looked at the clock above the register and sighed. It was almost eleven o'clock on New Year's Eve night and I was stuck working the late shift completely alone. Except for Carson Daly's New Year's Eve Special; that provided all the company I needed for the night. I was allowed to close early if no one showed up in the eleven o'clock hour but I didn't see the point. I had nowhere to be once the clock rang in the New Year.

I hadn't spoken to Aria, Hanna, or Spencer since I returned to Spencer's from my night with Ali on Christmas. They made it perfectly clear that if I continued to see Ali, they could no longer trust me. With Paige gone, the guys didn't feel comfortable being part of the interrogation Aria had in store for me. Hanna was too upset by my disloyalty and couldn't stay in the room. But between Aria and Spencer's accusations that I was also part of the A team, I had no choice but to firmly reminded them that I gave both Toby and Ezra the benefit of the doubt when we suspected both of them of being part of the A team too.

That was five days ago and I haven't spoken to anyone since. As much as I wanted to spend these past five days with Ali and pretend like the world outside her bedroom didn't exist, I wasn't able to. She texted on Christmas night to let me know she was leaving Rosewood for a few days and couldn't say where. Given that CeCe was in town, I had a good feeling they were together.

Glancing at the clock once more, I decided that I would close early. Watching Carson Daly bring in the New Year while I was home alone had to be better than watching it while at work alone. Going behind the counter, I reached for the bin that was full of clean coffee mugs and began stacking them next to the machines. Once I was finished with this I would go home to an empty house and call it a night. Before I could finish stacking the mugs, I heard the bell above the front door ring.

"We're closed," I said without turning to look to see who it was.

"Even for me?" I heard a familiar voice say.

"Even for you," I turned around and saw Ali standing in the doorway. I didn't realize how upset I was with her for leaving with barely giving an explanation, especially on the same day that my three best friends considered me guilty by association.

"You're mad," Ali stated and took a step forward.

"Lock the door," I interrupted her. I could refuse Ali service without any repercussion but if an actual customer came in I wouldn't be able to.

"Make up your mind," she half smiled at me but I ignored her attempt to get on my good side. She turned around and locked the front door.

Watching her flip the OPEN sign over to CLOSED, I felt myself starting to make excuses for why she left. She could have made plans to leave Rosewood before I showed up at her backdoor on Christmas Eve. It was possible she had to help CeCe with something personal and wasn't able to tell me through a text message. As she made her way past the first few tables, I walked around the register to meet her in the middle of the cafe.

"It's been quite a year," she said looking up at the television.

"I barely saw you for most of it," I reminded her.

"Em, I had to leave," Ali defended herself. "I know you said that you're not like me- that you can't leave the people you love, but I wasn't leaving you," she softly sighed. "I know it seems like I did but I didn't," she reached for my hand with hers and looked down. "I left so I could return to you," she added.

I took a step back from her and let my hand fall out of hers. She looked me in the eyes and I could see everything that she had gone through these past few years was finally taking its toll on her.

"I haven't spoken to anyone since Christmas. They knew where I was," I finally told her.

"Is it always going to be this hard?" she asked. I knew she was referring to us. Our whirlwind romance was beginning to become exhausting from the all the back and forth. "Why didn't you tell me?" she asked.

"I didn't think I could. Your text was rather evasive," I answered with a stern tone.

"I was with CeCe," she answered.

"I figured," I looked away from her. Ali leaned to the side so I could see her in my peripheral and I looked back at her. "When CeCe Drake beckons you go running," I snidely replied.

"That's not fair. She helped keep me alive these past few years," Ali snapped. "I owe her."

"Are you able to tell me where you were? Ali and CeCe's Bogus Adventure," I mocked.

"I will—just not yet," Ali ignored my comment.

"Then why did you come here?" I asked more as if I thought she was here to cause more harm than good.

"It's New Year's Eve," she innocently smiled. I could see the romance start to fill in her face as she let me connect the dots. "The person you kiss at midnight is supposed to be the person you will kiss for the rest of the year," she added.

"Shouldn't you be at the police station then?" I hit below the belt. I wasn't sure where all this anger was coming from.

"That's not fair," she said again as her eyes started to fill with tears. "Everything I do is to protect you—the four of you—and I'm tired of being treated like I'm the enemy. I'm not A," she raised her voice.

"I know you're not," I said as I tried to let go of my anger.

"I'm sorry you lost your friends because of me but they'll come around. Once we find out who A is," Ali paused and she looked over my shoulder back at the television again. "We have two minutes of this year left," she smiled at the thought.

"Once we find out," I repeated.

"Once we find out, everything will go back to normal," she finished. "I'll have my friends back; I'll have you back."

"As your friend," I scoffed.

"That's up to you," she looked at me with hope her eyes. "Is it always going to be this hard?" she asked. I knew she was referring to us. Our whirlwind romance was beginning to become exhausting from the all the back and forth.

As I thought about not having to hide my feelings for Ali would like, I heard the soft countdown from the Times Square crowd begin. Everything that I had ever wanted seemed like it could possible once A was revealed and my friends and I could go back to living a normal life. Looking at Ali, I let myself fall victim to her eyes and I let go of all the anger I felt toward her. The five of us had to do what was necessary to keep one another safe—even if that meant keeping secrets from one another for the time being.

"Five… four… three… two… one," the crowd yelled. Before they could cheer "Happy New Year," I leaned in and kissed Ali.

Feeling her kiss me back, she wrapped both her arms over my neck and pressed her body against mine. Placing my hands along her hips, I tucked my thumbs in between the waistline of her jeans and her bare skin. She opened her mouth and I brushed my tongue against hers and smiled as she squeezed her arms tighter around me.

"Are you sure the door is locked?" I asked as I broke from the kiss.

"Yes," she nodded keeping her arms wrapped around me.

"Good," I said as I gently pushed her down to sit on the table behind us. "Happy New Year," I whispered before I kissed her again.

"Happy New Year," she smiled as she moved her hands from around my neck and began unbuttoning my jeans.

THE END

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